The current invention relates to a method for distributing an energy flow over a predetermined period of time to a cluster of a plurality of devices taking into account constraints relating to the energy to be delivered to the devices.
Methods for distributing an energy flow to a cluster of at least one device taking into account constraints relating to the energy, such as for example a price, to be delivered to the devices are already known to the person skilled in the art. US2009/0228324 for example describes a method for distributing an energy flow by aggregating marginal demand functions and determining an optimal allocation based on the aggregated function, i.e. an optimal allocation of energy to devices of the cluster taking the price of the energy into account as a constraint. For example, two or more marginal demand functions, respectively, from two or more devices of a cluster of devices, wherein a marginal demand function represents a price for a given amount of the energy flow that the devices are willing to pay are obtained and aggregated to form an aggregated marginal demand function. Further the optimal allocation of aggregate amounts of the energy flow to the two or more other devices based on the aggregated marginal demand function is determined. The aggregation operation for example is the sum of the individual utility values, however other examples such as a weighed sum are given.
However, although the method according to the state of the art tries to offer a decentralized solution such as to avoid scaling problems, only the allocation of energy to the different devices is taken care of without considering the flow of energy to the cluster devices in function of time such that, although a short-term, and/or local, advantage is obtained for the different devices of the cluster, it is possible that long-term, and/or more global, opportunities are being missed.
Although US20090319090 describes a method for distributing an energy flow over a predetermined period of time to a cluster of a plurality of devices taking into account constraints relating to the energy and taking into account a forecast with respect to availability of energy, US20090319090 describes a situation with a limited amount of devices in a cluster, i.e. a solar PV array, a load and an energy storage system for a building. However, when the number of devices in the cluster is increased, it will become increasingly difficult and sometimes even nearly impossible to distribute the flow of energy of the devices of the cluster using the methods described by US20090319090.
Moreover, US20090319090 does not describe how power to be supplied to the cluster, once obtained, is distributed, in function of time, among the devices of the cluster and therefore does not describe how devices having a more urgent need for energy are treated with respect to devices have a less urgent need for energy.
Although US2008/0046387 describes a method for distributing an energy flow over a predetermined period of time to a cluster of a plurality of devices taking into account the price of the energy and taking into account a forecast with respect to the price of the energy, it does not describe how power to be supplied to the cluster, once obtained, is distributed, in function of time, among the devices of the cluster and therefore does not describe how devices having a more urgent need for energy are treated with respect to devices have a less urgent need for energy. Therefore, it is an object of the current invention to provide a method for distributing an energy flow over a predetermined period of time to a cluster of a plurality of devices taking into account constraints relating to the energy to be delivered to the devices while avoiding missing long-term opportunities and taking into account the urgency with which the devices of the cluster require energy.